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Visitor Comments: 14

(10)
Steven,
January 7, 2013 9:28 PM

I'm not exactly sure where this clip was heading, but...

I'm not exactly sure where this clip was heading, but if you ask my daughter who her favourite person is, she would definitely say Shimshi.

(9)
anonymous,
December 3, 2012 7:34 PM

People treat animals(like dogs) better than people bec.they often treat us better than people do. They are happy to see us when we walk int the door, they don't insult us, and we don't have to deal with them etc.Most others don't do that for us. HOWEVER, animals should not be treated like humans. Although animals should be treated nicely, humans are superior, and G-D doesn't have individual missiona for animals on this world, humans do. Furthermore, (i think) animals do not have a neshama (soul-the part of you that's a part of G-D), humans do and are therefore superior. Although it might be easier to treat animals better than people, its wrong, even if people are difficult.

yes your dog has more love for you it is a dog. dogs are known to be faithful but to choose your dog over your daughter?!?! your child needs your love more then your dog. She might not be the best all the time but let me tell you any human being has more potential then a dog. take it from me, your dughter needs you love more then the dog. I wish you the best

Anonymous,
April 5, 2013 5:48 PM

ever

you gave birth to ur daughter! u love ur dog more? a dog dosnt understand love/hate it understands what it likes!

(7)
Ruth,
April 18, 2012 6:10 AM

This film had nothing to do with animals, it was about abusive people.

This was very sad to watch. It really had nothing to do with animals or animal lovers. It focused on abusive people. The man and woman were extremely abusive to each other, and the woman was similarly abusive to the hotel manager and housekeeping staff. Animal lovers are also people lovers. This couple was neither.

(6)
Diana,
April 17, 2012 9:20 PM

Sometimes people have problems relating to people. Some people need more than they receive from the people they know. Pets, not just dogs, offer unconditional love and are a safe, loving substitute for some people. Pet shows are definitely more for the people than for the pets. Even the dog in this movie cares more for his people than for a ribbon.
I AM an animal lover. I think they deserve more care and respect than they get - just look at the bruised, battered, and starved animals that the SPCAs rescue. However, animals are not people. Sorry, PETA, chickens are not the same as people and roaches DO NOT deserve the same considerations as people do.
Rights, even animal rights, require personal responsibilities. Ownership has responsibilities. We are required to feed our animals firs,; to see to their health, safety, and comfort. But we MUST rescue the drowning man before we rescue his drowning dog (although we may feel otherwise).
As soon as my cat takes responsibility, for anything, he will have the same rights as I do. For now, he sleeps at the foot of the bed.

(5)
Tova,
April 17, 2012 3:46 PM

What was the point?

I'm an animal rescuer (as well as a volunteer EMT on the Old City Jerusalem ambulances), and here are a few comments:
1. This was totally lacking in humor.
2. The stupid violent yelling and gestures of the people were obviously frightening the dog.
3. Many people accuse animal-lovers of caring more for animals than for people. They don't pause to think that maybe animals lovers have so much compassion for people that it spills over into the animal kingdom as well. Before inanely accusing animal lovers of lacking compassion for people, perhaps the accusers should follow around the animal lovers to see that they are doing more for people than they themselves are.

Uli,
April 21, 2012 5:57 PM

well spoken, Tova!

well spoken Tova! I completely agree with you! I am a great animal lover, and I couldn´t live without them, but I also love people! I am really a lover of living things, really.

(4)
Avi,
April 17, 2012 2:19 PM

Well, that's funny...

(3)
Regina,
April 17, 2012 2:10 PM

Sad

It is disgraceful when so called pet lovers let their dog loose while completely ignoring that it makes people and kids around them uncomfortable. Any attempt to raise the issue ends with an insult and an explanation of dog rights.

(2)
Judith,
April 16, 2012 2:55 PM

I never met an animal that I did not like!

Hey Jill,
Seriously. this is just a movie. I think it's called "Best in Show"! I'm pretty sure It was on ION-TV last night because i was flipping the channels and caught a snippet of this. Most animal lovers, like myself are more interested in preventing animal abuse than going bonkers over pet toys and you, as well, should be seriously concerned about animal protection. They are Hashems creatures and they warrant our love, as they provide us with unconditional love, unlike some humans [not that I am unloved--I am very much loved]. Again, this is just a funny movie. Best In Show/Waiting for Guffman--same Director, I think. Animals are never crabby, but people are. LOL--Laugh Out Loud and Lots of Love!!!! :--) P/S as far as marriage I think you mean that animals are considered members of the family--that is true. My pets are in the pet cemetary and I mourn their loss every day. A'H. Do me a favor and go work in an animal shelter--do some tzedakah.
P/S--I love you AISH--because you give me this forum to EDUCATE people! B''H

(1)
Jill,
April 15, 2012 1:19 PM

Unfortunately true

This attitude is Unfortunately so prevalent in our society. I constantly encounter crabby people. Do they not realize that human beings are more precious and beloved than any other creation? Next thing you know people are going to start marrying animals. (check the news; it's already happened)

Julia,
April 17, 2012 9:43 PM

I love cats

I agree that some people who show their pets in shows like Westminster kennel Club go a little far. I wouldn't spend $700 on a dog Still, I've never seen pet lovers blow up! I also agree that human life takes priority over animal; still, animals are easier to love than humans! They might bite you if scared or hungry, but a dog or cat will never speak lashn hora or hurt your feelings or betray you in any way!

I've been striving to get more into spirituality. But it seems that every time I make some progress, I find myself slipping right back to where I started. I'm getting discouraged and feel like a failure. Can you help?

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

Spiritual slumps are a natural part of spiritual growth. There is a cycle that people go through when at times they feel closer to God and at times more distant. In the words of the Kabbalists, it is "two steps forward and one step back." So although you feel you are slipping, know that this is a natural process. The main thing is to look at your overall progress (over months or years) and be able to see how far you've come!

This is actually God's ingenious way of motivating us further. The sages compare this to teaching a baby how to walk. When the parent is holding on, the baby shrieks with delight and is under the illusion that he knows how to walk. Yet suddenly, when the parent lets go, the child panics, wobbles and may even fall.

At such times when we feel spiritually "down," that is often because God is letting go, giving us the great gift of independence. In some ways, these are the times when we can actually grow the most. For if we can move ourselves just a little bit forward, we truly acquire a level of sanctity that is ours forever.

Here is a practical tool to help pull you out of the doldrums. The Sefer HaChinuch speaks about a great principle in spiritual growth: "The external awakens the internal." This means that although we may not experience immediate feelings of closeness to God, eventually, by continuing to conduct ourselves in such a manner, this physical behavior will have an impact on our spiritual selves and will help us succeed. (A similar idea is discussed by psychologists who say: "Smile and you will feel happy.")

That is the power of Torah commandments. Even if we may not feel like giving charity or praying at this particular moment, by having a "mitzvah" obligation to do so, we are in a framework to become inspired. At that point we can infuse that act of charity or prayer with all the meaning and lift it can provide. But if we'd wait until being inspired, we might be waiting a very long time.

May the Almighty bless you with the clarity to see your progress, and may you do so with joy.

In 1940, a boatload 1,600 Jewish immigrants fleeing Hitler's ovens was denied entry into the port of Haifa; the British deported them to the island of Mauritius. At the time, the British had acceded to Arab demands and restricted Jewish immigration into Palestine. The urgent plight of European Jewry generated an "illegal" immigration movement, but the British were vigilant in denying entry. Some ships, such as the Struma, sunk and their hundreds of passengers killed.

If you seize too much, you are left with nothing. If you take less, you may retain it (Rosh Hashanah 4b).

Sometimes our appetites are insatiable; more accurately, we act as though they were insatiable. The Midrash states that a person may never be satisfied. "If he has one hundred, he wants two hundred. If he gets two hundred, he wants four hundred" (Koheles Rabbah 1:34). How often have we seen people whose insatiable desire for material wealth resulted in their losing everything, much like the gambler whose constant urge to win results in total loss.

People's bodies are finite, and their actual needs are limited. The endless pursuit for more wealth than they can use is nothing more than an elusive belief that they can live forever (Psalms 49:10).

The one part of us which is indeed infinite is our neshamah (soul), which, being of Divine origin, can crave and achieve infinity and eternity, and such craving is characteristic of spiritual growth.

How strange that we tend to give the body much more than it can possibly handle, and the neshamah so much less than it needs!